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The Voice, Francistown, 18 December 2008

Lashed

By Nomsa Ndlovu

"Spare the rod and spoil the child". These were the
words of Kgosi Charles Letsholathebe of Maun as he disciplined an
aggressive bully with five lashes for head butting a neighbour
and leaving him with a stitched eye. State evidence revealed
that the accused had not been provoked.

The groaning to the sweet bitterness of the whip of Tutume village born Ndagwadziwa Gonnamang 27, resident of Matomo ward,
Maun, could be heard from outside the lashing room as the Chief
and his police officers instilled manners in him.

In addition to the lashing, Gonnamang was also ordered to
compensate the victim with P150 for the injuries sustained.
Failure to do that within two weeks would leave the state with no
choice, but to auction his belongings or jail him for four
months.

According to the prosecution case, on the evening of the 31st
of October 2008, Thabo Obakeng was cooking some meat in his
courtyard when he decided to go into the house and collect some
salt for seasoning.

On his way out, Gonnamang who had been stalking him charged
and rammed him to the ground. A medical report form presented
before the court as evidence revealed the seriousness of the harm
caused. Now that his left eye is shrunk, Obakeng has to live with
the fact that he has been maimed for life.

The Voice, Francistown, 18 December 2008

Saved By Age

By Nomsa Ndlovu

Age has saved a woman batterer from corporal punishment at
Maun Customary court, Monday morning. Sentencing 43-year old Paul
Williams at the Maun customary court this week, Kgosi Charles
Letsholathebe noted that if the security guard from Boseja ward
was not over 40, he would have ordered that he be whipped
seriously in order to mould him. "You are very fortunate
that you are above the age of 40. Had that not been the case, I
would have bended you on the bench, walloped your buttocks hard
as a reminder that gender violence is a serious crime. Why do you
want to spoil her beauty? Do you want to keep her to yourself and
ban her from visiting her mother," Letsholathebe said.

Details of the case are that on the morning of the 13th of
December 2003, Williams' girlfriend, Ednah Mafunga left their
abode with her three children to visit her mother.

Upon return, jealous Williams refused to buy the story that
she had been with her parent. He accused her of spending the day
having sex with another man. As a result, he pulled her into the
house, bashed her hard on the head until a relative, Fazile
Mafunga heard her screams and intervened.

"We were called to the scene, we questioned the accused
if indeed he has assaulted his girlfriend and he said yes. We
warned and cautioned him for a charge of assault common,"
the prosecutor said

Williams left the court with a light a two months jail term,
which has been suspended for four months.